Ready, re-set...go

I think it’s fair to say that in life most of us want to progress.  Whatever the discipline, be it work or recreation, the aim is to improve and get better.  We may not always succeed but that’s often the aim.  The tricky bit is knowing how to do that and, in order to give us a sense of achievement, to spot the milestones we have achieved.  For some things this may be obvious; a promotion at work or an award won for example.  But for other aspects of life the improvement may be so gradual and the measurements so difficult to quantify that they can pass by almost unnoticed.  So, for example, I am certainly no chef, but at least the fire alarm doesn’t go off quite as often as it once did so I must be doing something right somewhere.  I’m probably a better parent than I was when my first son was born but I would be hard-pressed to tell you exactly how.

When assessing your progress though, I think part of the skill is remembering that life is not a race but a dance.  In order to take a step forward it is sometimes necessary to take a step backward. By all means concentrate on the path ahead but don’t forget to occasionally look over your shoulder to see how far you have come and to make sure you are still going the right way.

To relate this to swimming, never be afraid to return to basics.  Remind yourself that skills you now take for granted were once huge challenges to be overcome.  If you are struggling to master a particular element in your stroke and becoming a little dispirited, remind yourself of the things you have already achieved, and don’t forget that, no matter how accomplished a swimmer you are currently, there are still places to go and aspects to explore to make you even better.

Now that the winter months are here some of you will be lucky enough, when swimming, to find your gaze falling on turtles and clownfish.  But for those of us in the northern hemisphere swimming in murkier waters, the temperatures have fallen and outdoor swimming requires a little more fortitude.  Whilst this is not in itself a reason to stop open water swimming – the benefits are enormous – it has to be said that lower temperatures for many are not as quite conducive for honing technique ad learning new skills, taking as it does some of the focus away from the finer aspects of the stroke.

Thus, now that the season for longer distance challenges has largely drawn to a close and the challenges surrounding cold water swimming can revolve around merely getting in and staying in, perhaps now is also the perfect opportunity to take the occasional trip indoors and give your stroke a bit of an MOT.  Return to the basics of connection, balance, rotation and forward propulsion, and give yourself a brutally honest assessment of your mastery (or lack of it) over each aspect. Have any bad habits crept in that need to be resolved?  Where do you need to improve and what is the best methodology for doing that?  Look at the foundations of your stroke. Is a small deficiency in technique in one area having repercussions in others?

Now could be the perfect opportunity to regather and regroup before pressing on to even greater achievements next year.

Now, I wonder what that burning smell is coming from the kitchen….